The Crunch battled back from a pair of deficits but the Devils’ third period goal proved to be the difference, as Syracuse fell to Albany, 4-3, at the Onondaga County War Memorial Friday.

“I think it was frustrating for our players,” the Crunch head coach said. “I thought the guys played hard. It wasn’t a beautiful game by any stretch, but the guys played hard, they battled, and came back from 2-0 and 3-2. Then we had a turnover in front of our net with seven or eight minutes left and it’s in the back of the net. It is what it is.”

Kristers Gudlevskis allowed 4 goals on 25 shots for the loss. That's not exactly the kind of triumphant return one might've hoped for in Gudlevskis first action back from Tampa Bay. Then again, some rust due to inaction was probably inevitable.

It's a shame the Crunch spend all game crawling out of their initial 2 goal deficit only to relent the winner after getting the even footing for the second time in the game. Nikita Nesterov paid instant dividends in his return to the club by potting a power play goal that was the first equalizer toward the end of the Second Period. That's good news. Nesterov's regressed a bit early this year in Tampa Bay due to lack of action and a loss of confidence. Getting the chance to get more minutes, especially on the power play, is a good way for Nikita to get his swagger back. In the mean time, I'd expect a recall on the blueline to Tampa Bay for tomorrow's game against Minnesota (Slater Koekkoek?).

In his second full season in North America, the Syracuse Crunch forward is finding a way to harness his speed and skill, as well as making a habit of going to the hard areas of the ice. The 23-year-old has registered one goal and three assists in the first eight games with Syracuse this season, and is steadily improving many facets of his game.

“I feel really comfortable, I feel really good on the ice,” Vermin said. “I think I’ve made a big step forward from last year. I hope it keeps going like that.”

The Crunch rode the momentum from their power play work and Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 27 saves on 28 shots, as Syracuse cruised past the Hershey Bears, 4-1, at the Onondaga County War Memorial on Friday.

“He’s there when you need him, that’s for sure,” Crunch head coach Rob Zettler said of Vasilevskiy. “He was there for us early there for us, he was there late for us. I thought our middle part was really good, but he made some big saves for us.”

Andrei Vasilevskiy allowed 1 goal on 28 shots for the victory. Syracuse is off until next Friday now, and in the absence of anymore games this weekend the logical conclusion is that Vasilevskiy will find his way back up to Tampa Bay pretty soon with Gudlevskis coming back down by Friday's contest. We'll see if that's how it pans out. 2-0 with a 1.04 GAA and a .965 save percentage is a pretty nice conditioning stint for a goaltender, from where I sit.

Don't look now, but Anthony DeAngelo's got 7 points in his first 8 pro games. He's also averaging over 3 SOG's a game, which is symptomatic of fancy stat magic, from what I understand. Will his offensive game immediately translate from junior to pro? It appears so. Tonight was his first multi-point game with the Crunch.

Anthony DeAngelo picked up the loose puck, swooped down the edge of the right wing circle, and picked his spot over the goalie’s glove.

The Syracuse defenseman’s first professional goal during the third period Sunday in Rochester sent the game to overtime and secured a point in the standings for the Crunch. Six games into his rookie season, DeAngelo is showing he can chip in on the scoresheet, but is working on improving his defensive game to take the next step to the National Hockey League.

“It was a little bit of a broken offensive play, but he gathered the puck around the half wall and was patient enough with it to wait and allow their defense to bite a little before he took the shot,” said Syracuse Head Coach Rob Zettler. “He got himself into the prime scoring area, and it was a helluva shot. It went short side high and it was a big goal for us.”

Adam Wilcox allowed 3 goals on 40 shots but allowed both shooters to light the lamp in the penalty shot session for the SO loss. With news coming down today that Kevin Poulin cleared waivers, a provocative question about where Wilcox will be getting starts in the near future begs asking. Vasilevskiy will soon be back with Tampa Bay, pushing Gudlevskis back down to Syracuse and potentially making the best move for the organization finding Wilcox a place to get a starting role in the ECHL. He needs playing time to develop, and I don't see that happening as quickly with sparing appearances in a crowded crease situation in Syracuse.

The Crunch netted a pair of goals in the final 57 seconds but couldn’t overcome their struggles in the second period and on special teams, as Syracuse fell to the Hartford Wolf Pack, 4-3, at the Onondaga County War Memorial Friday.

“We had flurries late, but the damage should have been done in the first period,” said Crunch head coach Rob Zettler. “We failed to take advantage of two 5-on-3s. They got a 5-on-3 and they took advantage of it. That ended up being the difference in my mind.”